


[Love Is But a War] - Chapter 2: Confrontation

by eeexohhh



Series: Love Is But a War [3]
Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Dark, Historical, M/M, Not Really Character Death, Rating: M, Romance, Tragedy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-28
Updated: 2014-06-28
Packaged: 2018-02-06 14:00:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,466
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1860642
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eeexohhh/pseuds/eeexohhh
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Luhan fights for freedom; Sehun fights for revenge. But there is good in the bad and bad in the good.</p>
            </blockquote>





	[Love Is But a War] - Chapter 2: Confrontation

**Author's Note:**

> I forgot to mention, during official duties, Xiumin and Luhan address each other formally (eg. Your Majesty & Minister Xiumin). Once again, this story is unbeta'd so there's bound to be typos, poor grammar, etc. I'm working on chapter 3 as we speak so stay tuned! Thank you for reading :)

**CHAPTER 2: CONFRONTATION**  
  
"Your Majesty!"  
  
Luhan rode his horse to where his remaining soldiers were waiting. He jumped off and quickly got into the tent, where Xiumin was waiting. "Minister Xiumin, quickly give me an update on what is happening!"  
  
Xiumin told Luhan that Huo Ting's army had advanced through the western borders without any troubles. This would have been impossible, given that their numbers matched roughly to the group of men that Luhan's two generals had taken with them.  "Your Majesty, soldiers who escaped from there have informed me that half of the soldiers had dropped dead just before Huo Ting's army had reached the gates, their mouths covered in froth."  
  
Luhan frowned. They must have been poisoned so there must have been a traitor among them. Why would anyone defect to Huo Ting after their treatment towards them? "What happened to the half that didn't perish?"  
  
"The two generals and the remaining men joined Huo Ting's side, Your Majesty."  
  
Those greedy bastards must have been bribed greatly. Have I not treated them good enough? Greed is indeed the downfall of men!  
  
Luhan turned to Xiumin. "Minister Xiumin, please send a message to those at the southern borders and tell them to hold their positions. They are not to move unless they receive my order. We must not let the southern borders be breached!"  
  
"Yes Your Majesty!" Luhan turned to leave the tent but was stopped when his hand was caught by another. Luhan was suddenly pulled backwards and fell into Xiumin's embrace.  
  
"Xiao Lu..."  
  
"Xiumin ah! What are you doing? We have more important things to do!" Xiumin used to call Luhan by that name when they were younger, but stopped ever since Luhan became king. Luhan gently pushed Xiumin back and stared at him with slight confusion written all over his face.  
  
"I pray for your safety. Don't leave this world without me, okay?". Xiumin grinned and before Luhan could reply, he pressed his lips against Luhan's. Luhan's lips were soft, just as he imagined.  
  
Luhan was momentarily dumbfounded. When their lips parted, he quickly wiped his own with his hands. "Xiumin you idiot! Who's going to die? Not me and you better not either!" He turned around and quickly exited the tent before Xiumin. A soft blush had creeped up on Luhan's face. It was the first kiss that they shared. Luhan was not stupid; he had his suspicions of Xiumin's feelings towards him, just not the extent of them. He pushed these thoughts away; he had more urgent matters to focus on.  
  
As he came out of the tent, Luhan unsheathed his sword and thrust his arm in the air. "Soldiers listen! We must not let them advance any further! Fight with your life to protect what you believe in! Fight with your life for those you love! We did not escape from the slums just be pushed back there!"  
  
"You four! Take some men with you and surround the city central. If you see any civilians outside, tell them to stay inside! The rest of you, stay!"

"Yes, Your Majesty!" The four groups dispersed into different directions towards the city central while Xiumin had already rode towards the south.  
  
Luhan got on his horse and started riding towards the west, with the remaining men following closely. He hoped to catch Huo Ting's troops before they got near the city central. The city central is where his people lived. Even his place of residence, when he was not at the barracks, was located there.

~~~~~

  
After a twenty minute ride, he halted his men. He could make out Huo Ting's banners from a distance.  
  
As Huo Ting's army approached closer, Luhan could see that the group was slightly bigger than his own. He identified some of his own men, who rode behind Huo Ting's leader. An indescribable sense of rage riled within Luhan.  
  
The leader of the group of men placed his hand up, effectively halting his men in their position. The man next to him unrolled a scroll. "Long live His Majesty! His Majesty wishes to negotiate with your leader. His Majesty offers every men a chance to escape bloodshed should they join his men. Should you not accept, His Majesty will show no mercy and eliminate every single person who stands in his way."  
  
Luhan was surprised to see Huo Ting's king himself, equiped with an armour with an intricate design, at the frontline. Considering Huo Ting's large army, there was no need for their King to fight at all. "No thank you. We will gladly decline."  
  
"INSOLENCE! How dare you speak to His Majesty in that manner?"  
  
"Jin Fu will not show any respect to anyone who wishes to steal our land and had once forced its cruelty upon its people!"  
  
"Why you.." The man was stopped midway of his sentence by his king.  
  
Huo Ting's king stared at Luhan with a hint of curiosity in his eyes. "You, what is your name?"  
  
"Now who is insolent!" Someone behind Luhan had yelled out.  
  
"How dare you..." The man next to Huo Ting's king unsheathed his sword. His king once again stopped his action with a lift of his hand. "Do not worry, General Ma. A leader is a reflection of the kind of men who follows him." The king kept his eyes on Luhan. "Obviously, this leader of theirs is filth. Where is your king?"  
  
The comments caused an uproar from Luhan's men.  This rude man is the reason why Luhan hated Huo Ting. Luhan could not stand arrogance. "Quiet!"  
  
At his command, Luhan's men stopped their yelling.  
  
"He is standing before you." Luhan had no reason to be polite to such man.  
  
"Oh? So you are King Luhan? Never in a thousand of years would I have thought you were Jin Fu's king with such poor manners". Huo Ting's king lifted an eyebrow at this revelation. "Then again, you are only a self-proclaimed king who does not have any royal blood."  
  
This struck a nerve in Luhan but he maintained his composure. "Leave Jin Fu now and we will forget about what happened today. We only want to live in peace."  
  
The Huo Ting sniggered. "Forget about what happen? I will not let you .  You dare ask for peace when you were the one who destroyed it five years ago? You were the one who shook the system and now you will reap what you sow".  
  
 "We struggled to live everyday! How is that peace? You, who came from royalty, will not understand despair! Rich spoilt bastard!" Luhan was brimming with anger. No one, especially a high born, should belittle their suffering. Luhan never broke eye contact with their king and noticed that a flicker of annoyance.  
  
"This is an ultimatum: surrender and everyone keeps their lives or will you sacrifice thousands of lives and your own to fight for a lost cause?" Huo Ting's king's tone had become impatient.  
  
Luhan glared. "Men, prepare to fight!"

~~~~~

The clash of steel resonated in the sky; blood tainting the ground as if it was paint. Bodies of dead soldiers from both sides laid in pools of blood.  
  
Luhan's left arm was bleeding lightly after a soldier pierced through his armour with his sword. Luhan looked around; he could not tell who was winning. Luhan saw a flicker of light through the corner of his eyes. He turned and charged towards the source. Luhan saw a silver glow before a spray of red; Huo Ting's king had cut the throat of one of Luhan's men.  
              
Luhan swung his sword down at the other king, but was blocked by the other's blade.  Their eyes briefly made eye contact and the Huo Ting king chuckled. Their swords elegantly danced together, with neither one of the kings managing to land a lethal blow.  "Your last chance, little fool! Do you wish to surrender and let your people live or do you wish to sacrifice everyone for your selfish goals?"  
  
Luhan ignored him; his only goal now was to slay this man. Their swords continued to clash, with much stronger blows as times went by.  
  
"As you wish, you fool!" Huo Ting's countenance changed to one of seriousness. His footwork and his attacks slowly changed. As though it was a snake, his sword slid past Luhan's and nicked him where his armour did not cover completely. Within a few minutes, Luhan was covered in cuts ranging from shallow to deep.  
  
His wounds had an accumulating effect on his body and mind. Luhan knew he had to finish the fight soon or he would lose.  
  
Their swords connected once again but this time, Huo Ting's king pushed his sword with immense strength; causing Luhan to nearly lose his balance.  
  
In that moment, the battle was decided.


End file.
